这艘名为“贝叶斯”（Bayesian）的船周一遭受风暴袭击后在Porticello附近沉没。船上已有6名乘客和9名船员获救。当暴风雨来袭时，林奇和他的家人正在船上与几位顾问庆祝他最近洗脱欺诈指控。The Italian Coast Guard stated that individuals who went missing after a luxury yacht sank near the coast of Sicily are feared to have perished, including British technology entrepreneur Mike Lynch and Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer.
"Our motto is never say never," said Vincenzo Zagarola, spokesperson for the Italian Coast Guard, "but at the moment, there is reason to believe that we are more likely to find the missing persons inside the boat."
Zagarola added that with the help of warships and helicopters, the search for the six missing persons will continue. When asked if these missing passengers could survive in an interview with the news agency PA, he said: "The reasonable answer should be no."
The ship named "Bayesian" sank near Porticello after being hit by a storm on Monday. Six passengers and nine crew members on board were rescued. When the storm hit, Lynch and his family were on board celebrating with a few advisers after recently clearing fraud allegations.
Salvo Cocina, the head of the Sicilian civil defense agency, said earlier on Tuesday that the six missing passengers are Bloomer and his wife Judy, Clifford Chance partners Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda, and Lynch and his daughter Hannah.
The 59-year-old Lynch has been trying to restore his reputation as one of Europe's most successful entrepreneurs. For years, he has argued that he became a scapegoat in the HP acquisition. In 2011, HP acquired Lynch's software company Autonomy for $11 billion, and a year later wrote it down by $8.8 billion, publicly accusing Lynch of fraud.
Firefighters say that gaining access to the yacht, which is located 48 meters below the sea surface, is "very complex." A press release from the Coast Guard further states that divers are assessing the feasibility of safely entering the sunken ship, as the depth and position of the hull make the operation complicated.
Italian authorities have started investigating the shipwreck incident. A spokesperson for the UK Department of Transport stated that the Marine Accident Investigation Branch, responsible for investigating global accidents involving British vessels, has deployed four investigators to Sicily for a preliminary assessment. They will communicate with local authorities and emergency services to determine if an investigation is necessary.
The British embassy stated that the ambassador to the country has also flown to Palermo to meet with officials and families of the missing persons.
"Search operations will continue as long as necessary," added Zagarola, "what is certain is that a thorough inspection of every inch of the entire ship will be needed."
